Poker Glossary
Bubble
The stage of a tournament just before the payouts begin — the “bubble boy” is the last player eliminated with nothing. ICM pressure peaks here: short stacks fold almost everything to survive into the money while big stacks profitably shove wide, because nobody can afford to call them. Once the bubble bursts, the dam breaks and the all-ins cascade.
At the table
Twenty-eight left, twenty-seven paid. The shortest stack folds A♦J♦ face-up to a min-raise — the bubble makes cowards and geniuses of everyone at once.
House note
Bubble strategy inside →← Full glossary — all 52 termsThe bubble is where courage gets repriced by ICM, and most wallets vote no.
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